When did you last see...

... kids playing football on the street?

I only ask because there was an article in yesterday's Sunday Times about the success of young English players in Germany. It included the following:

[Jadon] Sancho, like [Reiss] Nelson and [Callum] Hudson-Odoi, is from South London, where the demographics and dynamics are perhaps similar to the Parisian banlieus from whence [Kylian] Mbappe came, but not anywhere in Germany. "It's how we were brought up from the start - it's street football. From there everyone expresses themselves and that's how people learn their skills,' said Sancho..... .... Street football means you fear no one because you have nothing to lose and are being yourself"

To answer the question literally, it might be 30 or 40 years+ since I last saw kids having a kickaround in a street (or public urban area that wasn't a park or dedicated pitch).

But even if you extend the term to include informal, uncoached, self-organised sessions in public parks etc, how much of this actually goes on, and how much were Sancho and the like influenced by this?

According to his Wiki:
"Sancho joined Watford at the age of seven. Due to issues with commuting across London to the club's academy, he moved into accommodation provided by Watford and began attending their partner school Harefield Academy as a boarder, aged 11. At the age of 14, he moved to Manchester City in March 2015 for an initial fee of £66,000 under the EPPP, potentially rising to £500,000 with add ons."

And for Nelson there's this:
"Nelson joined the Arsenal academy when he was nine years old and made a great impression on youth coaches, subsequently being regularly moved up to squads above his age group. He played 35 games for the Arsenal youth teams, including nine games in the U-21 team, in the 2016-17 campaign. Following several impressive performances in the youth teams, he signed his first professional contract with Arsenal on 10 December 2016, his 17th birthday."

Hudson-Odoi maybe less so, but even then:
"Hudson-Odoi joined Chelsea in 2007 [when he was 15] and made his under-18 debut in August 2016. He went on to net eight times in twenty-five appearances in his debut campaign, assisting the under-18's to their eight FA Youth Cup triumph."

They might originally have come from "the streets", but if I had to guess, I'd say it was the Academy system which was more responsible for developing their skill and style etc?